Ficus Oriental - Continued Care

Ah, the new year. Now that the holidays are over, it's time to get back to Bonsai.

I acquired an instructive book for Christmas that I have been reading and it suggests making cuts to my tree during the off season. This is due to the fact that ficus trees are in a family of trees that make rubber and they ooze when cut or damaged. This has encouraged me to pursue some design help and begin formulating ideas for the future of my tree.

I stopped by Bonsai West on my way home from work not long ago and asked a few questions. I confirmed that watering the tree by submersion is the correct method. However, my watering frequency may be off. I have been watering the tree every 10 to 14 days or whenever the soil is dry. My soil testing method has been to bury my finger slightly into the soil and if I feel moisture, don't water. Apparently, my ficus tree probably wants water every 7 to 10 days which produces a dryness to the soil surface, but some moisture below. This new watering scheme has worked well and I believe there has been some growth (also the weeds seem to be very happy which is another good indicator). I also asked about trimming my tree.

The advice given was that since it is winter, trimming is fine, but only remove up to 10% of the foliage. This is fine seeing as I don't plan on going crazy, I just have some clean up work to do. My first task will be to trim previous trimmings closer to the trunk or branch. Since this tree was greenhouse grown, many of the cuts were hastily done and should be refined. Bonsai West confirmed this and warned of die back. This refers to a small length before the cut that dies to protect the rest of the tree. Leaving a small amount between the cut point and the nearest leaf is necessary so the leaf won't die as well. Good thing I asked!

I am hoping to make my first trimmings this week. Stay tuned for photos (if blogspot cooperates) of the endeavor.